Review by Choice Review
Labor migration--essentially the movement of people in response to economic variables--has become one of the most significant demographic phenomena of modern times. The pattern of such migration is far from simple, however, involving group interactions, cultural traditions, legal and geographic constraints, and numerous other complexities. Not surprisingly, such an intricate background to a seemingly simple process has made the explanation and modeling of migrant behavior difficult, and has led to lively academic debate (see also The Unsettled Relationship-Labor Migration and Economic Development, ed. by Demetrious G. Papademetriou et al., CH, Sep'91). Stark's particular contribution to this discussion has been to emphasize the crucial role of the family, rather than the individual migrant, in formulating migratory decisions. This collection of 28 essays, reprinted from 15 demographic and economic journals, reorganized into 7 sections and provided with a brief introduction, summarizes the work over a decade of one of the most insightful and productive contributors to a rapidly growing body of literature. Each chapter has its original bibliography, and there is a summary index. Real-world examples of the migratory process are taken mainly from Mexico. Because the chapters were written as detailed analyses for experts in the field, the writing style is dense and the ideas intricately reasoned; frequent use of mathematical models will render the book somewhat opaque for general readers. This is, nonetheless an important collection to have under a single cover, and scholars of the many varied facets of migration analysis will find here much of value. University collections. -J. R. McDonald, Eastern Michigan University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
